World
Mélenchon draws thousands to Le Bourget and pushes a sweeping program
The La France Insoumise leader used a major rally to lay out key proposals and call for broad change. The event also included a tribute to Pengo Bossio Wangui.
Jean-Luc Mélenchon held a large rally on Saturday in Le Bourget, in Seine-Saint-Denis, where he again argued for far-reaching change and highlighted several core measures from the La France Insoumise platform.
According to France Info, more than 20,000 people attended, based on the organizers’ count. The event mixed speeches with short films and music in a format designed to energize supporters.
During his speech, Mélenchon said the only reasonable course was to change everything. The main goal of the gathering was to present his movement’s program, with leading figures from La France Insoumise going through its measures one by one.
The proposals mentioned included a 1,700-euro minimum wage, retirement at 60 and a phaseout of nuclear power. France Info also reported references to scrapping Parcoursup and restoring public services, two measures highlighted by people in attendance.
The French outlet said political opponents argue those plans cannot be financed. At the rally, however, supporters defended the platform and said funding could be found by targeting large fortunes.
In the front rows were several Communist lawmakers who, according to France Info, had turned away from their party’s candidate Fabien Roussel to back Mélenchon. Asked whether La France Insoumise should drop some proposals to broaden its appeal, Mélenchon rejected that approach and said it would amount to political maneuvering that would convince no one.
Clémence Guetté, a La France Insoumise lawmaker for Val-de-Marne, said the movement’s task is to prove the program is credible, workable and capable of creating hundreds of thousands of jobs.
The rally also observed a minute of silence for Pengo Bossio Wangui, who was killed two weeks ago in what France Info described as a racist attack.
Sources
About this piece. Written by El Notero with AI assistance, from reporting published by the outlet cited above. El Notero did no original reporting on this story.
